Naturally healthy

Among the most sustained social development efforts of the Tata Trusts in recent times is a subject that in many parts of India continues to evoke stigma and silence, shunning and separation. The ‘menstrual hygiene management’ (MHM) programme of the Trusts has concentrated on spreading the message that menstruation is a natural and healthy physiological phenomenon.

Launched as a pilot project in 10 Rajasthan and Uttarakhand villages in 2018 and now in its second phase, the MHM initiative has reached more than 191,000 rural women and girls — and some 45,000 boys and men as well — in seven states. The programme is currently being implemented in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, and it includes advocacy efforts at the national and state levels.

On May 28, 2025 — World Menstrual Hygiene Day — the MHM initiative got a boost with the unveiling of a campaign that combines social and behaviour change communication in telling fashion. The goal of the campaign and the MHM programme is to help build an environment where women and adolescent girls can manage menstruation — with dignity and without apprehension.